Thursday Poll: What is the Android Phone of the Year?

2014 is less than two weeks from being officially in the books. It has been a solid year for smartphone tech, especially on Android, though I’m not sure this year carried the same weight or significance as years past. Don’t get me wrong, it was a good year and a bunch of really great smartphones were released that will last a long time, I just don’t know how many of them will be all that memorable in a couple of years from now. With that said, we still need to decide who came out on top.

We saw follow-up flagships from all of the major players, like Samsung, Google, Motorola, LG, Sony, and HTC. None of them really took any chances, but they all still delivered phones that you would have no difficulty finding supporters of. Beyond the standard crew, we also saw Sony finally enter the US market while its newest flagship was still fairly fresh, and OnePlus made a big splash while pissing people off along the way. Like I just said – there were a ton of options, all of which were good in their own right.

We will have our DL staff top lists here shortly, but for now, we want to know the DL reader phone of the year. Who are you taking?

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yoyo

Having used most of the phones on the list. Moto x no doubt

enaybee

Only phone I voted for is OnePlus One just because it came out with S5 specs and undercut even the nexus 4/5 on price. A lot of people are saying its not available but if you really want it then xda could satisfy you in a day or two max.

Josh Meade

A little rant here. STOP WITH THE [email protected] 1440P DISPLAYS!!!! UNLESS YOUR PHONE IS 5.7″ (AND AMOLED) 1080p IS BETTER AND FASTER AND EASY ON THE BATTERY. THE DROID TURBO MADE A BIG MISTAKE.

Josh Meade

The note 4 is brilliant. With the metal frame, stylus, gorilla glass 4, and excellent camera and excellent display it deserves #1 (touchwiz still is meteocre though)

The Dude

It’s a travesty that the Nexus 6 is beating the Note 4, solely due to the Nexus fanboys on the Internet. It would be hard for a phone to have a worse launch or be more disappointing than the N6. Literally the only reason to buy one is stock Android L, which is by unfinished and buggy, and the Note 4 destroys it in everything else, and in fact I’d say the s-pen + multi window makes TouchWiz on N4 > N6.

JokesOnU

Note 4 garbage to the N6. Hardly any better than the Note 3.

Bill Hubbell

I voted for the Turbo; however I feel it is important to point out that The MOTO X (2nd Generation) were essentially closely related.
As an Android Purist having rocked nothing but Motorola Since Droids rolled out, I am Motorola Proud.
In my Opinion as Long as you vote Motorola it’s all good.
Respectfully!

mohsinleo05

Lets be honest, Note 4 is way better than Moto X.

BrianCherry

Nexus 4 FTW!!

BoFiS

Where’s your favorite phone of the year, the Z3 COMPACT? 😉

Lucas Strong

I had an LG G3 for a brief moment, BUT MAN the HTC One M8 is a beautiful device. It’s not only the hardware that they care so much about. They put a lot of time making all of the HTC-pre-intalled apps beautiful with tons of bonuses. Any HTC M8 user knows this. I mean the G3 was superb, but HTC really puts time into making everything about their ecosystem nice

I will totally give it to Moto X if it had a bigger removable battery with SD card expansion slot. Or to the One M8 if it also had a bigger battery with minimal bezels and no logo bar. So the Note 4 has it..it is a more complete device despite its size. The difference amongst the devices on the list isn’t much…all good phones.

Nikuliai

what about the S5? (pretty similar with a smaller size -> obviously some functionalities get lost in the way)

Mojor Izin

Well it’s gotta have a huge battery (everyone knows this is the Achilles heel of smartphones), which narrows it down to a few phones. Out of those phones it’s gotta be 1 hand usable, which is really none of them but the closest is the droid turbo. So it’s the turbo. I would never rely on a phone that requires 2 handed operation. It limits your multitasking substantially. Guess if I was a kid without responsibilities, or if I was a giant, I could deal with it. But it’s gotta be a phone first and foremost, not a tablet.

Nikuliai

it limits your multitasking but the phone gets multitasking!

jk I don’t care about big screens either for that same reason, I don’t even type with 2 hands on my phone

Would have voted for the Droid Turbo but its a verizon exclusive so I voted for the Moto X because software updates and sleek design.

donnyDon

In what world is the Moto X 2nd Gen Phone of the year? LMAO

jnt

Clearly you don’t frequent this site 😉

Nazzi_Muhammad

Since I have 2 N6’s under the tree I can’t say. Seems like ages ago I ordered these 2 N6 devices from Moto. And to think right now, you can’t find one online. Amazing!

JokesOnU

You can just through certain places.

Chris Knepper

I literally know nobody will a Nexus 6, but I know plenty with the X2, S5, and G3.

Why is the 6 so big? Whyyyyyy

jimt

Moto made it that big because Google wanted them to. So I would say Google.

JustMyOpinion

I have and love the G3.. but three interesting things to note:
1. If Nexus 6 inventory was better, and more people had it, would it take the top spot over Moto X?
2. If the Droid Turbo wasn’t exclusive to Verizon would it be higher on the list?
3. The fact that the Samsung Galaxy S5 and Xperia Z3 are almost identical even with all the heavy advertising Samsung does on tv and in stores and little to none that Sony Xperia has… just confirms that Touchwiz sucks and the Z3 is pretty damn good.

Sumanth

Moto X 2nd gen, for the price!

Butane87

I think I’m going the way of Kellen….smaller devices are becoming more appealing to me. And I didn’t think I would ever say this…but since I’m expecting a kid here any day now…camera is becoming more of a factor for me too.

Jroc869, Nexus-Life

Nexus 6 for me, I know shocker right. But what I have really realized with Android is that there is no perfect phone no matter how hard any OEM tries but stock Android, on screen nav keys and Motorola will win me over every time.

sandy

Can’t see results, it says “Failed To Verify Referrer”

Higher_Ground

same for me

noodsquared

Same for me. I was able to vote yesterday and today it’s giving that error. Weird. Maybe Apple or iSheep broke the voting system or maybe it was all the hate?

Meh Meh Meh

I totally voted for Droid Turbo. I wish I could pick number 2 as Moto X. Only because the battery and the ballistic nylon is awesome!

Jprime

If the G3 put the buttons where they should be, and had no lag–it would be an obvious choice. I know that you get used to the buttons being there, but does it solve a problem? Is the phone that much “sleeker” that it is worth alienating some people when they pick it up? Esp. non-teck people?

g3 owner

dude!! knock on turns the phone screen off and on. I never use the rear buttons. As for volume, its on the pull down notifications.

Jprime

I know, but I feel like they had to solve a problem they created with that. Change for changes sake. It’s really the lag that turns me off though.

Higher_Ground

I thought this was the most well-rounded year for android yet. While I don’t think it’s necessarily as innovative wrt phones, the fact that just about every manufacturer took a good phone and made it better should be memorable enough to me.
I think that the question has both gained and lost some relevance. No longer do you need to know which 1-2 phones to get and to avoid the rest. Now you can legitimately choose between a handful of flagships, and not be SOL in 12 months. The competition is tighter, but the winner is less important.

Nikuliai

100% with you

Jprime

I agree with your last point a lot. Used to be a lot of “crap” phones in the carrier stores, now they are mostly solid options. Pricing is still out of control though.

turdbogls

I dunnno, the only “new” thing in the list is the OnePlus One. they really shook up the smartphone world this year. I use it as my daily phone, and its awesome…but I know its not the best phone available.

I’m not even sure how the Moto X is leading this poll. yeah, its a sweet phone (as is every other phone in the list) but it got so much hate when it was announced….now everyone loves it?

I feel like the nexus 6 was a pretty big game changer as well bringing the larger screens more mainstream, and also having the nexus phone available on ALL carriers is a big deal.

not really sure what I’m supposed to be voting for….if I’m voting for a “game changing” device, its either the nexus 6 or the OPO, If I’m voting for which phone I would take if they were all laying on a table in front of me, it would probably be the nexus 6 simply because I HATE touchwiz and love Lollipop.

Nikuliai

There is no game changer this year IMO, it’s all about what phone would you take if given the choice. And about the X, the hate was about battery and everyone that had actually used it knows it’s not at all as crappy at the reviewers said it was, so the only reason to hate is the camera or the SD slot and neither of those are that relevant (unless you never back up you’re not going to run out of space)… It’s the phone I’d buy without blinking, only second to the turbo which I won’t but cuz is fugly

billcrosby

So many great phones… none of them reasonably sized

Nikuliai

The Z3 compact is your choice if you don’t care about Sony UI, otherwise I would go for the X or if that’s too big I would grab the Xiaomi M4 which is 5”

Jaison Abraham

The Sony Xperia Z3 because it have a 20.3 mp camera, waterproof and dust proof while having a great screen with a great camera that work under water as well. to me out of all the great phone this year. the Sony Xperia Z3 show the most change in a positive way. also they added a feature that allow you to play psp games on the phone as well which is a plus

RoboCop

Phone of the year should be like car of the year. What single device met these criteria:
1) improved on every weakness from the previous gen
2) reinvented or pushed the industry forward with its design
3) outstanding build quality
4) unique and helpful features
5) smooth and quick
6) meets the needs of every user and is available on all carriers
7) brings out the best experience of the Android brand

The Note 4 doesn’t do anything except get better specs than last year and add a metal band…other than that its easily mistaken for a 3.

The Turbo is having issues with the SIM slot and the volume rockers and doesn’t push the droid line further with its capacitive buttons. Its essentially a Maxx from last year sandwiched between the Nexus and Moto X

The Galaxy S5….hahahaha

The G3 has significant slowdown after a few months. Mine felt like a year old Samsung in that amount of time. It also had iffy materials and creaked with the quick circle case on it.

The Sony Z3: only the compact should be considered as the regular line is a small evolution over its previous gen. The compact is a strong contender for everything other than the last bullet point. It simple doesn’t give the best android experience.

The Moto X: last year’s #1 improves on everything, from a much improved screen, build, and materials, to getting the newest updates the fastest, and with an improved camera. It meets all criteria.

The Nexus 6: 100% altered from last year its essentially a complete overhaul of the 5, changing the game for smart phones and asking users to try the largest phone they’ve ever had. Its specs match the Note 4, battery life is good, camera is much improved, and user experience is outstanding…but it misses the mark on creative features. With it being a bigger, bolder Moto X without Motos signature features, that leaves us with our final 2 points.

Moto X vs Droid Turbo.
The Moto X is more customizable, camera quality is practically the same, regardless of MP, etc. It should really be a toss up.

Except the Turbo is a Verizon exclusive.

This leaves the Moto X.

Dixon Kwan

you missed the htc one m8

marduc812

I own a nexus 5 but I think oneplus one was the surprise of the year.

Jeff “BIG RED”

Failed to verify the referrer. Crap guess I failed the test!!! 🙂

jimt

You lose, ha , try again something must have been down.

atc-tech

Somebody’s gonna have to tell me the results. Every time I try to vote or view results it just says “failed to verify referrer” (on Android, chrome beta)

jimt

Try again,something must have been down.

Jones

G3
I have a Nexus 5.
G3 was hyper and lived up to most of it. It was a nice follow up to the G2.
LG is officially a contender

Vai

I don’t agree with the moto x 2014 being at the top. I feel Motorola followed the crowd this year, just made a large phone and threw the specs in with it. The LG G3 strayed from the pack and tried some new things. I give it to LG this year. Although the note 4 has done well to give users absolutely everything this year.

Happy Banger

If Samsung removed touchwiz I would have taken hands down Note 4. Or if it wasn’t for that small battery in Moto x 2nd gen I would have taken it hands down. But right now it’s the Nexus 6 and if it was a bit smaller I would have taken it hands down.

Cesar

Based just on the phone, Droid Turbo by a landslide. The monstrous specs of the Nexus 6 packed into a body the size of a Moto X. It’s a win/win.

jimt

I would almost agree except those buttons. Almost as bad as Sammy with the physical home button.

CabbageHeadCat.

Design, customizations, performance. Moto X 2nd Gen. Very close second for me OPO. I want the next OPO. Time to hit up the forums. 😉

Kenneth B.

G3 all the way.

Vanquishgc

Well firstly, as a disclaimer, I’ll state I’ve owned the M8 (which I loved), and currently have the G3. I have had the opportunity to have at least a little time with all but the One Plus One and Nexus 6. Honestly I was really tempted to vote the Nexus 6 because of the beastly specs and having Lollipop first. But the screen size is both awesome and its Achilles heel at the same time. The Moto X is tempting, but the battery is just plain undersized, and storage is limited. So yeah this’ll sound biased, but I have to say the G3 gets the nod for me. Big, gorgeous screen with very little bezel, making one handed use easier than the Note, good battery life (not fantastic, but it is removable so you can swap), an excellent camera on par with Samsung’s, a vastly improved UI, plenty of RAM, and expandable storage. I personally haven’t noticed any lag that some reviews talked about, but I also got an update as soon as I set mine up, so that might have fixed an issue there. Anyway, when you look at all the categories, the G3 checks the boxes off from good to excellent in all of them. It doesn’t have any real weaknesses. The M8 is awesome and I loved it to death, but the camera sucked. Plus it was rather large for a 5″ screen thanks to the bezel. The S5 was more of the same from Samsung, and the Note 4, while very good, STILL manages to lag even with 3 gigs of RAM and running the 805. And then TouchWiz…. I’ll stop there. I’d say the only thing the G3 is missing is water resistance, which is a shame but since it about nails everything else to me, I can let it slide. To me, it’s simply the best all around device this year.

Usmani

i like note 4 in every single matter except when its come to skin, touchwiz kills it for me!

213ninja

no surprises at the results….well, i’m a little suprised the Note 4 wasn’t lower……but overall, not surprised.

phone of the year in my book is the device with the baddest hardware, most blazing specs, and the most features. innovation is always at the top, but at this stage in the mobile game not many are innovating anything huge. the rapid charging features on moto and sammy are really sweet tho.

all that being said, Note 4 ftw.

Disqo Stu

The Nexus 5. It didn’t come out until the very end of 2013, and remained future-proofed throughout the year.

2014 was about phablets. The N5 remains the perfect balance of size, AFFORDABILITY and performance. A better battery, and slightly improved camera would’ve made it the best phone of the decade IMO.

jimt

I love my Nexus 5 but the batttery sucks, the speaker sucks, the camera I’m ok with and I’m getting the N6 but will still hate leaving my N5 that runs nice on lollypop 5.0.1 the N5 should have been listed.

paul_cus

Other…Sony Xperia Z3 Compact…and I own a Samsung Galaxy Alpha.

hyperbeatser

Moto X 2014 if you like kinda reasonably-sized phones, Note 4 if you’re a phablet person, which I am not. So Moto X 2014, which i own

Matthew Rosidivito

ITT: “What phone did you buy?”

John Kitchen

I voted for the Z3 but specifically the Z3v. I absolutely love mine, there’s not a thing I would change about it.

WickedToby741

I’d really like to see them launch an updated Nexus 5 based off of the Moto X (2nd gen) with carrier availability just like the 6. Not that I’m not loving my 6 (I adjusted to the size quicker than I anticipated), I just think the size limits its appeal and the Nexus family needs to have a 2 size approach like the Galaxy series and the iPhone.

StankyChikin

Not sure how a phone that is too big for most people could be considered phone of the year.. Device of the year maybe but not phone. In my world, phone of the year would consist of reliability, usability, build quality, software, radio quality, etc…

CasperTFG

Exactly. For the better part of the year commenters bashed large phones over 5 inches, hating on OPO’s 5.5 inch screen and others. Then nominating the 6 best of the year. You just have to laugh.

jimt

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

jimt

Your one in a million.

JokesOnU

Because those that used the phone that people complained were too big found out that it’s not as bad as it seems.

JoeTi

Droid turbo….Although not available on all carriers. Runner up, fire phone!

moelsen8

wow i don’t think i’ve ever voted “other” before.

n655

The number of people voting for the Nexus 6 is not equal to the number of people that actually own one.

Nikuliai

do you have to own all the phones so you can vote?

jimt

No

TouchywizzyiskindaCrappy

Impale that S5…die I say…DIE

sj0808

this blog site makes me laugh so badly lol

StankyChikin

Nexus 5 is missing from this list 😉

I would say Moto X or Xperia Z3 can’t go wrong with either of them.

nick azzo

yeah i sold my note 4 2 weeks ago and i’m using my nexus 5 while i wait for my nexus 6 to get delivered 🙂 i loved the note 4 but i feel like i need a nexus again

ElyFat

LG G3 or OnePlus One because alternatives and competition keep the industry leaders from turning into Apple.

h_f_m

Z3 Compact?

MichaelFranz

I voted droid turbo. The only downside is the availability. On paper the phone is best in the biz. Personally I think its revitilized the droid brand. Perhaps a year to late but nevertheless it was a large step in the right direction. Specs are off the chart, battery is superb, build quality is great. The overall package of this phone impressed me more than the nexus 6 and note 4. While I’m still waiting for the nexus 6 that’s for my own reasons. But if you had to pick a device that out the box was a heavy hitter and will see timely updates its anything from moto. Plus the feel of stock android with useful software again makes this phone of the year. Followed by nexus 6 note 4 then moto x.

While I currently own a S5 this device has served its purpose. Gimme nexus

Steve Palchik

I voted with my wallet for the Nexus 6 after owning both the 4 and 5 in years past. It’s a solid device and it took me only a few minutes to get used to the size. This year’s Moto X is nice, but I feel I already had that with the Nexus 5. Hardware-wise the Note 4 is very attractive, but like the iPhone the software kills it for me. I almost got a OnePlus One but the invite system turned me off. If the Droid Turbo wasn’t a Verizon exclusive, that could have been my new phone instead. No matter what, it’s been a great year for new phones and I have no idea how we’re going to top them in 2015!

pgsdi

I’m trying to understand why the moto x is better than the g3. Without fanboy opinions. I need to make a decision between these two thanks

tdizzel

So you want opinions, just not from people who like the phones….yeah, ok.

r0l

I had a G3 and went to a Nexus 6. While LG skins isn’t bad and the hardware is solid (and like the power button on the back) it just doesn’t deliver the same over package Motorola does with the N6 or X. I wouldn’t tell anyone not to get a G3, great phone, but for me if you are going >=5.5″ the N6 is the best option and for <5.5" the X is it as the hardware and stock just feel a little bit better.

Nikko

You guys are such dick riders seriously….if Kellen loved some Kyocera boost mobile phone all u boys would have it or vote for that phone just because y’all ride his pipe like a roller coaster

tdizzel

You sound like you’re upset because he won’t let you ride it.

Christian Trevor Clauss

The Moto X is a good phone and all but Motorola’s Customer Service department SUCKS!

Artune

Just to be random, I just received the 5.01 update on my Nexus 6. Play store edition with VZW sim.

Clift

2014 is the year that all you posers will learn and truly see that Sumsung owns the large phone are an otherwise known as phablet. The haters will realize that the Galaxy Note 4 is boss. The truly one device that regulates all the other wanna be’s out there. Nexus 6 move over to the one true ruler of all that is known as the Note 4. This is the category Samsung created and the Note is king. /yarrell

:-p

vzwuser76

Was there a Lord of the Rings marathon on this weekend?

Michael Chediak

Voted for the G3 because that’s what I have.

aSUf

Wth? htc oneM8 should be in the top 3 u guys.. behind note 4 and nexus 6 problably. You cant beat the build quality and the speakers on the m8.. plus the ui is the best in the market at the moment smooth and zero lag..

tdizzel

That’s your opinion. You only get one vote and don’t get to decide what other people like. Your opinion works for you but clearly not for the vast majority of people here.

C-Law

I would have put moto x and bought it had they simply made it have dual stereo speakers. Instead N6 gets my vote and it’s what I bought

Trooper311

Moto X 2014.

Christopher Moore

Note 4 + Gear VR = Best setup of the year.

Otherwise Nexus 6 but that’s why I have a Nexus 7 2013; to get my lollipop fix.

joejoe5709

Other than the phablet segment which the Note 4 walks away with, the best PHONE is a split between the G3 and the Droid Turbo. Those are the only two phones I would be okay with spending two years holding in my hand. I’m sorry but other than maybe ergonomics, the Moto X kind of sucks and the Droid Turbo does everything the same but better. The Nexus 6 gets REALLY close, but it’s just too large. I’d get a Note 4 at that point. Other than water resistance/proof, the Sony and GS5 really have nothing special that the G3 doesn’t do as well or better.

Rashad

I didn’t vote. I just wanted to see the results. Since I haven’t used every phone on this list I can’t vote on this with confidence.

needa

you are doing it wrong. if someone handed you a list with those phones on it and said you could have any one you wanted, which one would it be?

just saying that ‘reader’s choice’ and ‘editor’s choice’ are two different things.

Tyler Rynberg

Meh, every flagship this year has significant flaws. The phone I’m most tempted by is the Moto X.

Nikuliai

2015, the year of the possible “perfect package” -knocks on wood-

Turb0wned

It has been a pretty lousy year for Android phones.

Moto X= Terrible battery
Nexus 6= Huge with not so great battery
Droid Turbo= Seemed perfect but only on VZW
Samsung= Toucjizz

Honestly, the Z3 was probably the best of the bunch.

art

Lots of great devices there . Lollipop alone can’t place the nexus above the Galaxy Note 4, which surpasses it in nearly every other category. This iteration of TW is fine, also. And there is so much clever functionality built into the S-Pen. The Note isn’t for everyone naturally but Samsung built a winner, and a device that stands apart from the rest of the field.

JokesOnU

Sorry but it doesn’t beat the N6. Off to bed I go.

dk1golf

iPhone 6?

Oops – not Android!

Godzilla

no

dk1golf

I bought the wife a Moto X for Christmas. It better be as good as everyone says. She’s an iSheep

Turb0wned

The iPhone 6 plus takes the cake this year. I hate to say it, but it does. Great battery, Great Camera, iOS is opening up. No carrier bloat. No cheap plastic. It would honestly make for the perfect Android phone.

Marshall

I had a go with a 6+ and couldn’t have been much less impressed. How is iOS “opening up?” The Fapple mantra is still “do whatever you like, as long as we’re ok with it.” I’ll concede iPhones have usually been fairly well built, but bendgate has ruined their run IMHO.

Nikuliai

Well it would be hilarious if the iPhone 6 gets voted as the best ANDROID phone of 2014… I would definitely change my vote to the iPhone just for the lulz

Godzilla

X FTW

B Brad

I’d vote droid tubro, if it wasn’t limited to verizon. I’d vote moto X 2014, except for it’s small expoxied battery. So note 4 it is. If the best phone in the world is just a brick if the battery doesn’t last long enough (or is at least replacable).

vzwuser76

You can use it on AT&T with full LTE (per forum member’s experience) and T-Mobile with full HSPA and LTE in some areas.

Rodeojones000

Tough choice. I feel the Nexus 6, Moto X and G3 and M8 are all worthy. Can’t speak for any of the other non Samsung devices as I’ve never used them.

Eric Cappa

I own the LG G3, my parents both love the Note 4. I have friends who swear by the S5. I can’t speak for any other phones but the G3’s battery life is legendary.

aye_winchell

I will fully admit that the phone i own is the phone i voted for (moto x 2014) but i can only vote for something that i have actually used or held or seen in action.

So no One+, z3 or turbo, sorry guys, they all have there pluses however, I just haven’t be into sony phones, have never seen a One+ and the turbo, meh, sorry can’t do capacitive buttons any more and I’m not sure the battery is all that nesseccary(its nice dont get me wrong, but coming from a razr/g2 i kinda had an idea of what i needed, and it wasn’t a 2 day battery), plus i’m kinda over the look of the droids (had be using a OG razr maxx before the G2, which i broke and had to go back to my razr maxx for a bit so for about 3 of the last 4 years or so).

I’m not into large phones, i get that some people like them, but i need something that i can handle with one hand (phrasing) and having had a g2 i knew that the sweet spot for me was the phones (for the most part) with the 5.2″ screen. Having come from the G2 i was really exited about the G3, in the end it was just a bit too big for me, i know a few people that have them though and they really like them, plus as time went on i was really discoraged with how much i had to do to keep the UI as clean as possible, using root/Xposed/gravity box was great but in the end i didnt feel like it was worth my time jsut to get a UI that i could stand to use. So that eliminated the G3 and Note4 and even the n6.

That leave me with the X, M8 and S5. I can eliminate the s5 immediately, UI is much to busy for me, but that isn’t a deal breaker, just a minor thing I could maybe get over since all the specs are there (i’m not really a specs guys but they make for a good guideline) and yes the home button/capacitive buttons are a turn off for me (add this with the UI and its two minor dings for me that add up), but the one glaring thing for me, is that damn chrome trim around it, reminds me of a dining room table from the 70’s (i’m pretty sure they got their design ideas while binge watching the wonder years on netflix). Sorry its horrid, it looks cheap and it feels cheap.

So for me it came down to the X and M8. The M8 to me has a great design, but i have issues with its heftiness and also dat bezel. Plus i’m not in to the skins, i know they can be replaced with launchers (nova, google, etc.) but just like with my g2 i just found it to be too much…not work per se, but just time consuming (I had a couple of times when things update and I had to tweak or set things back afterwords that was just kind of a pain) You’ll notice I didn’t say anything about cameras, why? Because I don’t care, the camera is an add on to me, I don’t really use it often, so I don’t care. Does it take pictures, great, that’s all I need.

So I went with the moto x because A) I’m biased and 2)I thought that the moto X was the best combination of hardware/software that I could get. I will fully admit that without that turbo charger (that i keep at my desk and usually charge a little at some point in the day) it might be tough to get through a long day but with my usage (and ability to leave my phone at my desk for a bit and by bit i mean 30 min, 30 min will get me from 50% to 95% if i happen to get down to 50% before 12:30 which is not often) the battery isn’t much as an issue for me personally, I use it just as much and plug it in at the same times as i did my g2 and razr maxx the only difference is how much battery is left WHEN i plug it in (say 60% maxx, 40% g2 20% X without charging during the day). So that’s why I voted for the moto x, not that anyone cares 🙂

Nikuliai

similar reasoning, but I can’t get the m8 where I live :B

Orion

We all know you guys are going to pick the moto x. As for me, my phone of the year is the Nexus 6. Finally the Nexus phablet I’ve been waiting for. Love this phone.

Nikuliai

I loved the nexus but phablets are not for everyone (and clearly not for me, I don’t enjoy a 5.9” screen)

Ted Ockels

The phone of the year needs to be the phone that pushes the market forward… innovative and different from “the pack”.

My vote for 2013 would have been HTC One M7 for its all metal design.

I believe its a toss up in 2014 between OnePlus One and Nexus 6. Depends on what you found the most innovative (size or price).

JRP

Xperia Z3

Great battery
Great camera
Great screen resolution
Good screen size
Great build quality
WATERPROOF
Noise canceling audio built in for headphones
Pin connectors for docking that charges the phone.

This phone is underestimated in almost every “best android phone” article.

LaFave07

I really want to try this phone out

JRP

I’ve been an android user since 08 with the G1. I’ve tried many android phones and the Z3 is an amazing phone thats just as good, if not better than all 2014 phones. Same specs as the rest, plus waterproof is what won me over. Despite the software complaints, I’ve been happy with the Google Now launcher over Sony’s launcher.

I’d recommend this phone to anyone. I love this phone.

Marshall

It is good, I’ve been using Go Launcher on my Z3 and have been very happy with it.

Richiec64

would definitely have my vote if it weren’t for the software

NexusPhan

Software and price. Fantastic phone nonetheless

John Kitchen

Download a lollipop theme apk and slap on Nova. Software is no longer an issue.

supremekizzle

Was between the Z3 and the X 2014. If Sony does a Z4 GPE, I’ll be all over that like white on rice. After using N4, and then going to the G2, I had to get the Moto X to rid myself of manufacturer skins.

LiterofCola

Agreed.

Richiec64

Don’t understand why Moto X is the phone of the year when it has comparably horrible battery life. Not to mention its lackluster spec sheet for a flagship device

needa

lackluster spec sheet?

LaFave07

Small battery, small storage options and mediocre camera.

guesswhat

well it is priced appropriately for using slightly smaller battery and no sd card

Richiec64

who cares if its priced appropriately, that’s not what the question asks. It asks which is the best android phone of 2014.

guesswhat

well value for the money also counts as one of the criteria for judging best phone of the year

needa

no the question was ‘lackluster spec sheet?’

Nikuliai

oh look I have a quantum phone with 11” and kitkat… it costs $30.000… does it count as the best android phone of 2014? no, why? because NOBODY WOULD FREAKING BUY IT, price per money is FUNDAMENTAL in every purchase choice, which this poll is

needa

it got me through the day, although my cheeks would be puckering at sunset. i have never maxed out 16gb. and 13mp with 4k vid recording is the spec on the camera. not the quality of the pics it takes…. which isn’t that bad.

Richiec64

note 4 has better screen camera battery and processor…… and most of the other phones on the list beat the moto x in at least a couple of those 4 categories

guesswhat

but but moto x runs smoother and faster than note 4 in spite of having lesser processor and ram ..for some that is the most important thing along with clean user interface and innovative/unique features

Richiec64

Note 4 has way many more useful features than the moto x and I’m not so sure the moto x runs faster than the note 4

guesswhat

you are talking about touchwiz gimmicky features that just clutter the user experience and slow down the phone and don’t really do anything usefull??

Many? I mean the pen is useful (unlike the Nexus 6) but that’s it, the multi window thing it’s totally useless to me but it’s probably awesome for others… what else does it have to offer? (honestly curious)

If the Moto X had all the APKs on it that the Note 4 did, it wouldn’t perform well at all – it’d be flat out crap compared to the Note 4. Running smoother/faster should just be a given for the Moto X without all the extra APKs.

Kevin

What’s a better processor to a smaller processor when the Samsung phones run like sh*t?

guesswhat

people who use it are happy with it ..people looking at spec sheets and numbers do whine about it

Richiec64

I’m not whining. Yea it’s a great phone, but clearly it’s over hyped compared to phones on the market these days

Nikuliai

and that’s your opinion, I’ve tried most of the flagships and I don’t find them attractive at all

I swear if only the Nexus 6 was Moto X sized then it would have easily won hands down. Oh well…maybe next year Nexus…

Alec

That sounds good in theory but when you have two phones that not only have the same shape, but same screen size it just doesn’t make sense. Especially when google wanted to price it at $649. I feel like since google partnered with moto and took their design they had to make it bigger or it would be too hard to differentiate in retail stores and again it would be nonsensical if they were identical.

Pootis Man

Perhaps.

Dave

Yeah it has TW, although much less invasive now. Note 4.

needa

why do your screen percentages not match?

lesprince

Look at the times it’s 6 hours later between screen shots, so I sure there was more screen usage during that time, but the 1% battery change is questionable maybe it’s 2 different charges,but anyways 7 hours screen on time is pretty awesome for any phone out there.

vzwuser76

There’s nothing to prove that the two screenshots were even taken on the same day. Who takes screenshots to prove battery life and takes the main shot and SOT shot 6 hours apart?

Jeff0138

Went with the MotoX even though I don’t own one (Nexus 5) here. Primarily because of the stock experience and the useful features. I want to ding it because of the small battery but thats tough. Nexus 6 would get it hands down if it were just slightly smaller.

LaFave07

Don’t know how you guys can deal with the battery life and small storage options on the Moto X.

I had it for two days and had to return it. Back to my S5 and crappy TouchWiz but at least I know I can go a full day with it easily.

Dave

I cant argue with this…

LaFave07

Yeah what did you have to shut off to get that?

Dave

Just 4g for a few hours in our cement bunker at work.

LaFave07

You must not browse the web much in those 7 hours. Don’t even see Chrome on the list. Web browsing is what killed the battery for me.

Dixon Kwan

But those two screenshots were taken one at 2:58pm one at 9:09pm… a bit less convincing

needa

opo all the way.

Brent

I went from the note 2 to the nexus 6 and I am very disappointed. I have a stripe in the center of my screen from top to the bottom and trying to deal with customer service what a joke first they couldn’t find my replacement order number then after an hour on the phone they find it but they have no idea when a.replacement will be sent so wish I went with the note.4.

Brian

M8>MotoX ≈LG G3>Note 4

NexusPhan

I hated the m8. Had it for two weeks. Aluminum is an idiotic material for a phone. Missing LTE bands for t-mobile. Horrific camera. Very unwieldy for a relatively small screen phone. But man am I excited for the m9. Not sure why but I still love HTC.

guesswhat

top 3 moto phones ..looks like OEM of the year goes to motorola

Enrique Vargas

I voted for the g3, i do own it and it’s a great phone with big screen in a “small” bofy

Moneer Alasmar

G3 army assemble!
This phone is fantastic, it doesn’t really have any shortcomings in my eyes. Especially now with lollipop the phone blazes through everything.
Battery is good, camera is great and the screen is so gorgeous it makes me want to watch Youtube on it instead of my desktop.

LG has been doing a great job with the G line, can’t wait to see what’s in store next year.

Mark Aaron Collado

LG G3 FTW ^_^

mickeyB88

Gotta agree, great phone. I recorded some video at a concert and was astounded at how good the quality was, both in video and sound. Battery life is amazing, and the extra battery gives it that extra kick I need some days. I will say that I lament some of the more useful features on the Moto X (2014), since for some reason the voice assist (both LG and Google) on my G3 sucks balls.

Peter Blanco

Despite whatever phone and bias you may have, as a total package I think the Moto X 2014 is the best all around device fornt “average” consumer!

Coming from someone with a Nexus 6 🙂

Verj

Htc rules!!

Chris Hilbert

Used a Nexus 5, OnePlus One, LG G3, and Nexus 6 as my DD this year. So far Nexus 6 is my favorite. If G3 hadn’t included a skinned OS, it’d be a closer game. The G3’s footprint is great compared to the OPO and obviously N6. Nexus 5 battery was dismal, OS great. I thought the Nexus 6 would be too big, but something about it – curved back or something – makes it not seem big after you use it for an hour or two.

d790

i have the G3……so i voted for the G3

Bob’s Bilderbergers

NOTE 4!!!!

DK

No Z3 Compact?

Michael Henderson

I can’t say any of them impressed me really. The phone I hoped stood out was the G3 and nexus 6 but neither was really great. G3 was a slight update over my G2 and nexus 6 has TOO MANY issues to be that great

Patrick Smithopolis

I really wasn’t too impressed with any phone this year. I hope next year brings better and smaller offerings.

If it was just specs and functionality, I think the Droid Turbo would win this. However, the fact that it’s got Verizon’s virus (locked Bootloader, forced apps, no chance of customization, and late updates) puts it MAYBE in the top 4…

dannyWHITE

This poll is biased. No surprise that the Moto X and Nexus 6 are top 2 considering this site drastically favors Motorola/ Nexus devices. I disregard the top 2 and claim the G3 winner.

Nicolas Finn

Say what? How’s that?

dannyWHITE

If you’ve followed the site as long as I have you would understand. I’m not hating on Moto or Nexus 6 by any means. I currently use a N6 but I voted G3.

needa

just because there are a slew of moto fanboys on this site doesn’t mean the phones aren’t worthy of their spot.

vzwuser76

Well at the time I’m posting that’d be the Droid Turbo at the top if you removed #1&2.

JokesOnU

Poll is not biased. Just another person that just doesn’t agree with how things played out.

Each device has its advantages and disadvantages some advantages are better then others like battery life to me is more important than wireless charging while some have the latest OS which still I could careless for over batter life. So I would say Droid Turbo and Xperia Z3 are the front runners in my books.

The only reason I would ever put the Moto X above the Nexus 6 is availability. Nexus 6 is the best Android phone IMO, but specs don’t matter if you can’t even buy one.

vzwuser76

Size is a factor as well. Phablets aren’t for everyone.

NexusPhan

Nexus 6 hands down, specially for the folks on Verizon

NexusPhan

Whoa whoa whoa. What’s this nonsense? How can there be identical user names? I didn’t think that was allowed. Who are you?!

NexusPhan

It’s called guest names trump registered names. Lol. Oh by the way, this isn’t the same person that posted first.

mikewilson1021

I would love to vote Nexus 6 as I bought one from T-Mo on 11/21, but I have YET to receive it! So I’ll vote the G3 as my wife has that one and is a beast of a phone. It flies, the screen is amazing, and the camera does a decent job.

Suicide_Note

Geez, what’s taking so long? Are they having the child laborer who built it swim across the ocean with it to personally hand deliver it to you?

Higher_Ground

hot air ballon

mikewilson1021

I guess the kid has reached the US shoreline because I FINALLY got notification that it is on its way! T-Mo must have heard all of my moaning and groaning.

Android4life

The beauty of “best phone of the year” is that it is entirely subjective and always will be. So in my humble opinion, it’s Moto X (2nd gen). I used to be caught up in the spec war and simply this phone while not the best hardware out there or battery life, it’s the overall user experience that takes it over for me. I wish people would try Active Display because there is no going back to a useless LED light once you have tried it. The features are useful and the software is clean making it a fluid fast experience. If you need crazy battery life or the best screen or speakers, then look somewhere else, but the Moto X does provide a complete unique experience like no other phone out there.

Didn’t like a single phone released this year. They’re all too damn big or are ‘minis’ with terrible specs or awful software. Sticking with my 2013 moto x for the foreseeable future

NexusPhan

Z3 compact???

tyguy829

software is terrible…sony’s skin has to be the worst out there currently

NexusPhan

Agreed. Great phone, but it would require a custom ROM. I have high hopes that Sony fixes that garbage software with Lollipop….

Nikuliai

the Z3 Compact is pretty good…

But I wouldn’t trade touchless so I get where you’re coming from

tyguy829

yeah it doesn’t have touchless or active display, but beyond that, the whole sony skin is unusable for me

Nikuliai

I thought I was the only one… Everyone I talk that owns a SONY basically bullies me because “that’s not the case anymore -insert insult about being ignorant-” but every phone I’ve checked has the same crappy UI that you can apply a kind of custom theme

Mudokon83

I got a LG G3 because I read alot of bad things about MOTO X 2nd gen battery. no one else? Also not great camera. So I bought an LG G3 based on that.

Can’t go wrong with the G3. I think it was my most used phone of the year before the Moto X came out.

NexusPhan

Interesting. I found that with my usage (a ton of google music and Netflix with a three Bluetooth devices always connected) I got better battery out of my moto x 2014. G3 screen and constant LTE just seemed to destory battery. That camera was amazing. I miss it so much. Basically I exclusively use my camera indoors under low light. G3 was insanely good.

teknologikl

I love that the S5 is currently in last. Droid Turbo FTW! 2014 was definitely Motorolla’s year

yeah it’s a double edged statistic – the S5 is the oldest 2014 flagship so it’s lost the most appeal but had more time to build up the sales. That’s just going to happen when you release phones in 6-8 months cycles.

Marshall

Nobody said it’s untrue, just that it’s rarely a reliable indicator of quality. That logic says the iPhone 6+ is the best phone in the world, which we all know is patently untrue. The Z3 has sold a lot less than the S5 but I wouldn’t hesitate at all to say the Z3 hands the S5 its backside in most departments.

I know I’m going to get downvoted, but the Nexus 6 is a really great device. I think it’s my favorite for this year. #1 reason? The screen real estate. Sure, one-handed operations are not as easy as smaller screens. However, after using a device this big, almost every other phone feels like a toy in comparison.

With that said, I think all phones released this year were pretty spectacular. There is no one phone to rule them all, so you’ll need to look at the pros/cons of every device and judge based on those merits. What works for you, well it just might not work for someone else.

No down vote here. I have no complaints about the N6 hardware. Moto/Google did a really nice job with it. Now I just need El Goog to squash more Lollipop bugs.

wh1te_mag1c

Isn’t battery life kinda meh on the n6?

Orion

My battery has been fantastic.

Suicide_Note

Not for me. My phone comes off the charger around 6 am and doesn’t get on again until I get to bed around 10 or 11 pm. I usually get home around 6 on and have about 20 – 30% battery left with a minimum 2.5 hours of screen-on time, and no WiFi access whole I’m gone. That blows away every other phone I’ve ever had. My N

r0l

I find it meets expectations for a 5.5″+ sized phone. I wound’t brag about it nor would I complain about it.

Dark_Laser

So brave…

subiedude85

Moto G 2nd gen. Bought one for my sister in law that moved in with us recently and it’s really smooth. For the price you can’t beat it.

Matthew DiGiacomo

Note 4. I’ve used all major phones and have still come back to the Note 4 at the end of the day. Has the best battery life and camera out of all and with a custom ROM there is no lag whatsoever.

In my opinion the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 is the best phone of the year. To A LOT of you it might not seem that way, but it’s more amazing to me than any other android I’ve ever owned. What really makes it stand out is fast charging, and that gorgeous display!!! 🙂

Intellectua1 2x

Moto X and G3?? You people have got to be high or joking!!! I have owned the G3 and that garb is nowhere near phone of the year!

Suicide_Note

I agree. The N6 was phone of the year.

PoisonApple31

What did you vote for?

Intellectua1 2x

The phone I currently use, The One and Only Note 4

Tony Byatt

Tough call between the Moto X and Nexus 6 for me…

Eric G Canoy

Anything is better than my current Galaxy Nexus… oh the woes of keeping unlimited data

We should almost do a poll to see how many people still own the Galaxy Nexus…

Jordan Webb

Well, technically I still own it. It’s just not in use.

OhWell

I just gave mine to my dad. It’s his first smartphone -_-

Higher_Ground

if it’s the cdma version that’s just cruel 🙁

Bigsike

Mine is now living along with my mother she thinks it’s a super duper fancy computer device. Lmao

Eric G Canoy

1… Just me so far

Orion

Haha I just upgraded from the GN to the Nexus 6 last month.

Jack Bauer

I still keep mine around for tinkering from time to time (on VZW).

JokesOnU

I still own mine but I only use it when I wanna test roms out. I don’t even have Verizon anymore. Throw the WiFi on and test a rom and turn it right back off. And the screen is cracked and still operable.

zeelurker

Why not just upgrade to one of those original Moto X Developer Editions for $200?

Eric G Canoy

B/c they’re not $200 and I’d like to keep my unlimited data plan from Verizon

NexusPhan

Yes they are $200. Droid life has listed that deal numerous times. (2013)

Well as long as were already voting for next year. My vote goes for the Nexus 5.5 next year.

Jem

Same here. That’s all I wanted. I want all my future phones to include the IR blaster the G2 and G3 have…I use the one on my G2 everyday as my remote for all my devices.

Raven

Can’t agree. The Note 4 and the Nexus 6 are all too damn big. Only a 5″ish phone can win the “Phone of the Year” title for me. So, despite its short comings and because the Turbo isn’t cross carrier, I had to vote for the Moto X (2ng gen)

Intellectua1 2x

Yea I’m a big phone guy so only a 5.5″+ phone with true phablet capabilities can win it for me.

vzwuser76

The Droid Turbo works on AT&T (full LTE)/and T-Mobile (HSPA and some LTE). The only issue is you can’t get them for other carriers unless you buy off contract. Otherwise they work fine.

brkshr

I love my Nexus 6, but I have to give my vote to the Moto X (14) because of the added useful features and the more manageable size for most people.

Guest

lol poor Galaxy S5, first from the bottom

Maxim∑

I guess the poll has turned into “phone with best software of the year”

steve-o

i really really like my xperia z3 (d6603)

Colin Huber

So basically everyone will vote for the phone they own.

Richard Gao

Nah, I have a Moto X Pure Edition and voted for the Note 4.

schlanz

respect.

anyone who’s really being honest with themselves would have to go with Note 4.

I have a Droid Turbo and Note 3.

Richard Gao

Well, if we’re being brutally honest, a lot of people with small-normal size hands (not me) don’t want a 5.7 inch monster. Also, Nexuses still have vanilla software and fast updates. Although those aren’t problems for me (I’ll just flash a ROM if I want to try a new build of Android), lots of other people don’t like Notes for this reason.

Nikuliai

I have normal to big (not huge at all) hands but pocket wise the it’s not comfortable to me, and I swype a lot so I like to reach the top of the screen with my finger without issue, 5.7 would force me to move the phone in my hand every time I want to access the settings… deal breaker to me.

And yeah, the UI is a big bother too (which I got rid in every samsung device I owned, but I got tired of tweaking with the OS of my phone, I shouldn’t have to at this point)

Richard Gao

I agree about the screen size thing, but having MultiWindow makes it worth it for me.

I actually like tweaking things around and making them my own, so no problem for me there.

Nikuliai

yeah it’s a matter or preference, that’s why I said it’s not for everybody (I don’t like the whole multiwindow thing, it’s good if you need it, but I don’t and most likely ever will), it’s like Motorola, if you don’t use touchess controls and active displays it’s just not the phone for you

Christopher Moore

Problem with a Nexus is that you never settle down with the device if you flash roms every other day. And if you don’t flash the experience is stock Android; no different from the Moto X. Google failed to take advantage of the N6 size and that’s why Note 4 still wins in my book.
I personally got tired of the crackflashing and I’m fine with my locked down Note 4. Even on my 2013 Nexus 7 I keep it stock but rooted just to get a taste of the latest version of Android.

jerbanumbi

Tell me the advantages of the tablet 7″ against the phone 4.3 to 4.7 ” and what make the 7″ better or less?

ClikFire _

I agree with the flashing ROM. I use to flash Roms all the time but this past year I’ve become burned out. Now I just use my Nexus 5 stock. Most Roms even the “stable” ones eventually have issues that force you to factory reset or flash another ROM. I’m to the point where I just use the phone as is. If I want to customize I’ll use a launcher like Nova.

Nikuliai

why?, I honestly don’t see the appeal of the Note 4, it’s the same as the Note 3 and while it’s an amazing phone, it’s not for everyone

Richard Gao

That’s unfair, the GPU is much more powerful, the screen looks even better, there’s a fingerprint scanner, fast charging, OIS, more megapixels on the front and back, a metal frame, better battery life, and support for 128 GB cards. They look similar but the Note 4 is a pretty nice improvement. I thought the same as you for awhile, so I don’t blame you for saying that.

Nikuliai

again, that’s the note 3 a year later…

Richard Gao

??

Nikuliai

it’s just the natural progression in hardware, that’s nothing new to me, the only “new” thing is the fingerprint scanner and they did that cuz Apple did so it was kind of meh… that’s my point, there is no big improvement or a big new functionality, but that’s basically the problem of 2014, just “the latest hardware”

CabbageHeadCat.

I get what your saying. It isn’t earth shattering or anything. Its a great phone, but they didn’t reinvent it. The article touches on this point with all the phones. For me if that is what someone is looking for then the OPO wins just for its newness. But I’m sticking with the X. Battery is great for me, its 1:47 am and I still have 43%. Screen is awesome. And the added features are actually useful for me. Size is damn near perfect too. Camera takes some pretty great shots, (along with some bad ones). It is the perfect balance of trade offs for me.

Note 4’s biggest tradeoff is build quality and feel. Can’t do that after my OPO and X.

Nikuliai

Damn it, battery was the main reason I was able to skip this year’s X, now I’ll have to find another excuse (the camera is fine to me, I don’t get the whole “It can’t take pictures with lie light” thing… Only practical use I see to lie light is birthday songs and who cares about quality video there).

And agreed, the OPO is pretty much the only real runner this year but the availability makes it a no go, so I’m only tempted with the new X but I have the old one so it feels stupid to change my phone this year since it works so well and I now have one and a half days battery with my usage

Keith

Yeah, both my wife and mother-in-law have the 2014 Moto X running Lollipop and the battery is much better than everyone made it out to be before they had a chance to actually use it.

Nikuliai

I wasn’t concerned at all about it being bad in that field, it’s just that the new battery offers exactly the same as the one last year so it was kind of “why bother, I just wanted half a day longer battery” and it seems android 5 will deliver it

Keith

Ah, gotcha.

Josh Meade

I didnt need anything new, just better

Nikuliai

Well that’s great, unfortunately for me that wasn’t the case (and for the people that are taking too seriosuly the fact I don’t like the progression in hardware this year… I won’t love it no matter what), but if you needed just a new generation device (with a litte better things and a litle less flawed products) that’s great cuz the market will make you happy. It didn’t make me happy tho so I’m waiting what 2015 brings to the table

Nah that would be unrealistic, I want them to detect when I’m farting and put a notification note so it doesn’t look like I just farted

On a serious note, Moto had 3 issues to fix: hardware, battery and camera (with the SD as a plus) and they fixed just the overall hardware, by a lot, but the other 2 fields saw little improvement (100mAh and a better camera that has the same issues than the one before: coloring and low light shots). So that’s what I expect from Motorola, I don’t want much (I’m not asking for a huge leap like contextual processing, those things happen only once a couple years) but every brand had their struggles and most of them didn’t even care to fix them, they just got better hardware so people notice it less

NexusMan

and TouchWhiz.

Jason B

Except that QHD + S805 = FHD + S801.

There’s really no point in having the S805 unless you’re at 1080p, not 1440p. You’re not getting an actual increase.

that’s the progression of the hardware from one year to another, I don’t see the appeal in that… I change my computer every 4 years because there are some tasks that work in a less than ideal way (almost none but enough to force the swap), in the mobile world we’re at that point… if you have no phone or a 3 year old phone any flagship will be a massive improvement but if you have a 2013 phone I just don’t see the point in spending near $700 for just “a little better things”. But right now they are selling phones each year because there is somehow the twisted idea that phones take big leaps every year and that’s not the case anymore

schlanz

well fortunately this poll is about comparing phones from this year, not phones and their last year predecessor, in which case I’d vote the Droid Turbo as the most improved.

All I was getting at is its nothing more than hyperbole to say the Note 4 is the same as the Note 3. Not anything about it being a world of difference that demands an upgrade. I have an upgrade to burn but I’m holding onto my Note 3 because it’s still working awesomely for me.

Nikuliai

Yeah but to me this year phones are all about the same with one or two differences, so this is basically a personal preference poll, but yeah, it’s hyperbolic but not less true because of it, the Note 4 is just the Note 3 with the hardware the Note brand is EXPECTED to have in 2014 and if you have a Note 3 you have almost no reason to upgrade even if it looks cooler on paper so, to me:

If you’re voting the phone of the year as something that has a clear advantage against all the others my answer would be “none”
so I took this poll as “if I HAD to buy or recommend a flagship this year, which one would be it?” which seems to be the perspective most people took it cuz, let’s face it, 2014 was a pretty sh*tty year in tech

Anti-Nikuliai

2014 is pretty sh*tty year in tech? Let’s see the Note 4 has a heart sensor, fingerprint sensor, an amazing display, great 16 mp rear camera and front facing camera which allows you to take panorama selfies, and I don’t even have to press the screen to take a selfie, I can have multiple applications open at the same time and adjust the size of the windows as I see fit, the phone is smart enough to know that when your in a program you may not want to be interrupted so when a call comes in it is small window that takes up part of the screen which you can choose to answer, decline, put on speaker etc, stylus that can cut any part of the screen out and take screenshots, write on the screenshot…do I really need to keep going on? And this is just one phone that came out this year. I can tell you my note 2 that I upgraded from couldn’t do most of what I described above and that’s just off the top of my head. I’m not quite sure what you expect out of these companies do you want it to 3D print a clone of yourself to work for you, make you dinner, and wipe your a**? Unless you’ve physically owned one of these “unimpressive” devices as you are implying they all are then you should wait to pass judgement. I did not think the Note 4 was going to be a huge upgrade but the differences in not only the hardware but the software were well worth it for me.

Nikuliai

Let’s see…
-Heart sensor: Meh, my 2010 mid tier phone with flash was able to do that
-Fingerprint sensor: gimmick, has potential but no market and probably never will (like NFC, cuz of security)
-Amazing Display: Cool but oversized
-Great 16MP rear camera: normal hardware progression
-Panorama: old as f*ck
-Multiwindow: I don’t see the point on a tablet, why bother in a phone, also, present 2 years ago

So at least what you listed isn’t that impressive, it may be a lot of good features that I missed, but I used it and I didn’t care about it so it’s not the phone for me.

I would enjoy a 3D clone of many things but not of myself (cuz again, no point) and there is a tool in the bathroom that wipes my butt if I want to…

As I said before, I’ve used the phone, I find it a shiny brick with some neat things, but I wouldn’t use it as daily driver even if Samsung paid me to…

droidyfe

Oversized display us personal preference. Oversized for you perfect for me.

What’s the age of panorama have to do with the functionality of it? What phones had this as a feature in the front camera?

Multi window is perfectly usable on a phone screen that is “oversized”. You contradict yourself…first the screen is too big now it’s too small?

You failed to mention other software features I mentioned. Small pop up window so it doesnt disturb you when using an app? Is that not smart?

No mention of the stylus? Let me guess it’s stupid and you’ll never use it? It adds a ton of functionality.

The fact that your saying you wouldn’t even use this phone if Samsung paid you tells me your a troll. Nobody would decline this phone for free and get paid to use it.

Nikuliai

How many guest accounts are you gonna make to make it look like it’s more than one person arguing?

-Camera: it does count, it’s just expected so I don’t really care, I don’t care about Motorola making Voice controls better, it’s just expected.
-Panorama: who cares if it’s on the front or the back, if you move the panorama is over, it’s an old and -imo- not really that useful.
-Multi window is perfectly usable on a screen that is oversized: I agree on this, the multi window has the potential to be useful on a big screen, but 6 is not enough to me for THAT purpose and 6 is too much for me in the general confort matter… I can fit a tablet at my pocket (sometimes, depends on the pants) but I don’t want to and if I need to check 2 things in the same screen 6” is not enough at all… heck I have an ultrabook (13.3”) and I don’t split the screen there… I only do so on my home desktop (20” and 42”), so yeah, I don’t give a f*ck about multitasking on a screen that size but I don’t want a bigger phone either, there are plenty of devices that can help you at that and thinking a phone should do all is just dumb.
-Small pop up like the notification bar? yeah, it works there on the top, I hate the “facebook messenger” kind of notifications, I find them more intrusive and annoying, but some people may enjoy this, if you do so that’s ok, I just do the same with my finger in full screen mode
-I didn’t care about the pen, it’s a good functionality for people that need that stuff (it’s an AMAZING tool in construction) but not for me… I don’t need to split screens nor take notes with a pen nor write on a picture. Some people do and that’s great for them, for me it’s another irrelevant thing I would never use. Besides it’s nothing new so I consider it as hardware progression on the same model (like Boomsound or Moto Voice, everyone expects their next phone to have their big gun)

I don’t think the Note 4 is a bad phone by any means, quite the opposite actually, but I don’t agree that the phone is that big of a deal compared to the Note 3 or the Note 2 for that matter, it’s just revamped hardware and some tweaks to the already existant functionalities (which are the best among all the Samsung devices). I actually like the phone and it’s the only phablet I would buy or recommend if I had interest in that part of tech, but I don’t, it’s the best there is in that field but to me it’s not the best of the year since I value other stuff a lot more than what the Note 4 offers. I know a lot of people doesn’t agree with me and I don’t care, as I said at least 10 times in this thread THE TECH IN 2014 IS ABOUT THE SAME IN ALL OEM’S, WHAT YOU LIKE IT’S JUST ABOUT PERSONAL PREFERENCE, there is no “phone of the year” this year because no phone actually blew anyone away… All the phones this year were great but were missing something, same as last year, when you had a sh*tload of devices that can pull their weight until 2015 without sweating and the upgrades from one year to another were basically just hardware and that annoys me. It wasn’t that hard to say “nah I’ll just wait and see what -insert brand name here- is throwing this year”, because it was all kind of meh…

The only interesting thing in tech this year to me were smartwatches but Wear is too freaking green yet, it needs another year

sector7

What exactly is going to blow you away then? What are phones missing that you have to have in order to say okay I’m impressed? The tech can only go so far so I guess what are you expecting them to do to impress you? All they have left is to improve current hardware and software. There’s only 2 components there they can improve and they have done that quite well in my opinion. As I said before I came from a note 2 I used for 2 years and the note 4 is a drastic upgrade. Is it a completely different device? No. That is why I am sticking with Samsung. It is similar yet improved. If someone drives a BMW and they likes BMW they don’t want the next model to be like a Chevy. They want it to be better than what they had before and that is usually achieved through improving current features and technology and adding new technology in as it becomes available because there is only so much they can put in vehicles now….better engines, slightly better gas mileage, new tech like air conditioned seats and lane monitoring came with time but at some there is just not much else they can do.

See and smart watches to me are dumb. Why would I want another device that has a ttiny screen I can barely see and try do anything productive on it? I have a phone in my pocket at all times that had a screen that I can actually use.

Personally I think the fast charging is one of the better features to come out because as phones can do more they also need to be able to have batter to do those things so fast charging is a great idea. I can get about 20% battery in 15 minutes. That’s a great feature that anybody will find useful not just personal preference.

Nikuliai

Me personally? Without 0 innovation:

-Stereo speakers
-Efficient customizable voice recognicion software and hardware (like Moto Voice) for a touchless experience
-An efficient camera (like the one in the Z2 and Z3) in hardware AND software
-Size options from 4.7” to 5.3” in phones, 5.6” to 6.2” in phablets
-CPU and GPU from the current or last year
-2 day or more battery life with at least 5 to 7 hours SoT
-Wireless charging and Fastcharging (the latter only on USB), with removable battery because of the degradation it will handle with those fast cycles
-Near to Vanilla Android with IMPROVEMENTS, not the UI that makes the system unusable after 5-10 months (depending on the UI)
-Fast updates comitment
-1080p (let’s face it, 1440p looks great but it hinders the system for almost no win, the screen in the S5 is gorgeous and it’s 1080p)
-Stable and robust build quality, form is all about personal preference but toss the device to the ground, if it’s good to go most of the time fine, otherwise design it again

Making it short, A perfect-ish package and the ability to choose, but right now even if most of the OEM’s are offering one thing unique they are really lacking in other fields so right now the whole market is about conformism, you have to settle for the smartphone that has what you want but have to lose something in the process (performance in the long term and/or short term, camera, size, UI, updates, voice recognition, sound quality).

All of this is doable with the current technology and it gives you a phone that most people would want to use, if you wanna sell it at 100 or 200 buck more I don’t think people would mind that much, you can keep your identity but give a good phone for everyone… what’s the big issue if they do? sales would go down in the long term.

And yeah, Smartwatches are dumb but the point of it is not a smartphone replacement, it’s a tool like pushbullet with some extra functionalities (sport tracking, home automatization, comfortable maps, taking notes, pictures, FINDING your phone, plus an extention of your phone, not a replacement). The Pebble approach (imo) is more than enough, all the other devices go for the kill in the shiny screen and that has their costs too (mostly because of battery tech) but the smartwatches have alot of potential, that’s why I find it interesting, but right now it’s just a tiny baby toy for geeks or people with a lot of money.

phoneboss

I don’t see anything on your list that hasn’t been done already besides wireless charging and I am unsure about the customizable voice recognition. I don’t use it except for speak to text in messages and in Google search so I don’t keep up on that.

You want 1080p screen which is older tech, a 2 day battery which already exists, you want phones from 4.7 to 6.2 (there are tons of phones that have screen sizes within these ranges), efficient camera already exists not sure what is different about the camera in those phones but with phones like the note 4 you can launch from the lock screen and the g3 you can launch by pressing volume down for 2 seconds, the interfaces on these cameras are very simple with many features and if you don’t like the software there are other camera programs put there hence why they make third party apps because a manufacturer can’t please everybody it is simply impossible, near to vanilla android…Motorola phones like the Nexus 6 exist already and I prefer Samsung phones because they offer additional like multi window you wouldnt have with vanilla android, durable build quality exists and has for years they have the commando phones that are military grade and the s5 has water resistance and there is a pretty simple solution for this its called a case….name me a material that is undamagable and would be affordable to put in phones so you can throw it on the ground and nothing happens, stereo speakers exist, fast updates exist and honestly I don’t want to have a bunch of updates anyway.

So again almost all these things exist or have existed. Basically you want to have a build my own phone from scratch. You want to pick the manufacturer, hardware materials, software features and have them build it for you because that is the only way you would get all that in one phone because again one manufacturer will not please everyone. This problem doesn’t just exist in phones it is in all products. No products are perfect for every person because each person wants something different. At the end of the day manufacturers have released some great devices this year but some people like you will never be happy with what’s available.

Nikuliai

Yeah, they all exist but you have a tradeoff

Samsung: Long term performance, UI is crap
LG: Performance cuz of too much ppi for its own good
Sony: UI is crap, The performance is unreliable
Motorola: Camera, Battery, Storage -> only Storage and shape in the Turbo
HTC: Durability, Camera, Battery
1+: Availability
Huawei: Updates, UI is meh, Cameras are meh (haven’t tested all of their phones)
Xiaomi: Haven’t tested one yet
Nexus: (6) Size, Encription hinders performance, Storage, No real usage of the size. (5) Camera, Storage, Build Quality

Each one have their own weakness and it’s up to you which crappy functions annoy you less. I don’t like that particular market so right now I’m not buying a phone…

nailinthecoffin

Yes every product has a trade off but the trade offs in phones are so small now you nitpicking them to death. Look at the review ratings for each of the flagships. They are all 4-5 stars. Obviously people are happy with these phones.

Samsung does not have problems with long term performance. I had the note 2 for 2 years and didn’t have issues with performance. The ui is personal preference. And if you don’t like it get a different launcher that is the beauty of android. I always go and get a launcher and put my themes I like on it.

LG doesn’t have issues with performance due to ppi. My gf has the g3 and it runs smooth as butter.

HTC I would say battery has always been an issue for them but build quality? No way.

Motorola has good phones in all categories and I could care less about the other brands.

The fact is anybody could use any of the flagships and be happy. No device will have every single feature you will want. The only feature I want my note 4 doesn’t have is water resistant. Other than that it about as perfect as I could want it to be.

Nikuliai

Yeah the tradeoff are small but if you have a device from 2013 you have virtually no reason to upgrade, and that’s BECAUSE the tradeoff is still there, if Motorola would’ve fixed the camera, battery and put a SD slot I would had bought the new X, but since they didn’t I won’t… and I won’t buy in other OEM cuz they don’t have what I’m used to (Moto voice and display) so there is almost no reason to upgrade. And the X is the one with the “crappiest” overall hardware in 2013

BTW Every single samsung device I’ve seen transforms into lagfest at some time for every single person that doesn’t know how to factory reset their phones, and I also do install a Launcher in every device I use, but you can only fix so much in the UI by doing so… it lag less but still lags.

LG DOES take a toll because of the QHD and so does the Turbo, it’s not even near unusable but it’s considerably slower than a (good) 1080p device with a S801, that’s because of the 805 not being able to handle QHD properly

HTC has good feel in hand and it looks pretty darn solid but it tends to fall off people’s hands and it bruises when it does (unless you have a case in it, but I never do)

Motorola has good phones in all categories BUT it falls short in the same stuff: Camera, Storage and Battery, they fixed Storage in the low and mid end but the flagship still doesn’t have SD cards, the Camera are better ONLY in the new flagships and the battery is virtually the same from one year to the next one… they still are the OEM of my choice because they have the overall product that satisfies MY needs but I often wish my phone had a better camera or that I have to run to the charger or turn on airplane-ish mode when I’m having a busy or long day (I have 32 gigs so storage is not an issue to me, but it would be if I was a “take a video” kind of person)

It’s true anybody can use any flagships and be happy AND they most likely will buy in the same brand 2 years later, but the ammount of fixing they do in one year is -at least for me- not enough to make the sale convincing.

Overall I do find the Turbo -in terms of hardware, size and software- to be the best flagship available, but I just hate their form factor which is why I didn’t jump the gun instantly but I may do so during the year cuz they fixed it all of the above, the camera is WAY better, the battery is WAY better (they even went for Turbo charging and Wireless charging) and the Storage is 64gigs by default where I live which is more than enough for most human beings (we get the Maxx here aka GSM Turbo)

PS: Sorry about the wall of text

numberonestunner

It is stupid to not have a case on a phone. People like you are the ones that come in to the store pissed off cuz they broke their phone on a drop because they didn’t have a case and then want to blame it on the carrier or manufacturer for not making a good enough build quality. It’s a phone that is almost entirely screen on the front if you drop it and have no case you are asking to break your phone, it’s just common sense. I am not going to waist my time arguing about the rest anymore because I know who is right and you obviously have things against certain manufacturers regardless of what they do.

Nikuliai

Stop assuming stuff kid, I never use a case and I’ve never broken a phone because I buy phones that seem they could resist an ocational drop…
Also I buy all my phones in prepaid, so even if I broke it I would just deal with it but OBVIOUSLY I won’t buy something that seems like it may break easy because I don’t buy ANYTHING if I think it will… THAT’s just common sense…

Will you wear a case on a smartwatch too?? those are almost entirely screen on the front too…

I may have to reinforce my house too cuz if an earthquake comes and I don’t have enough things holding it in place I’m asking to destroy my house…

But I’m sorry, I obviously have things against EVERY OEM since I bashed all of them… jeez

2nd PS: I was complaining about the easy bruising on the SIDES AND BACK of the device, so the percent of the screen is totally irrelevant and you’re just ranting because you got mad

wastenotwaist?

I’m not ranting because I’m mad I’m saying people are stupid who carry a phone without a case because that’s my opinion. I sold phones for 7 years and people would come in all the time trying to pull stuff because they dropped their phone and cracked their screen and they are the same people I highly recommended they buy a case and they did not buy it then they are mad when it does break when all you have to do is buy a 10 dollar case and it wouldn’t be an issue.

No I won’t wear a case on a smart watch. A watch is strapped to your wrist. Big difference between that and a phone that is constantly being taken in and out of your pocket every single day.

You can reinforce your house if you want but seems unnecessary. That is a natural disaster which is a lot different than dropping a phone.

Yes you do obviously have things against pretty much every manufacturer some more than others obviously. But some of your claims are simply not true. Samsung phones used to lag a long time ago. Basically since the gs3 came out lagging really hasn’t been an issue like it used to. LG has always been a mid tier phone until the g3 and it has no issues of lagging since I personally use one every day and my gf hasn’t complained once. Not to mention look at the reviews I think the g3 has 4.5 stars nobody complains about lagging or performance issues because of the qhd. Motorola has put out good phones but yes camera hasn’t been up to par with some other phones out there but it’s not that far behind.

Ps I am aware of the different waist and waste spellings. I am not writing a college paper so not too worried about the correct spelling.

Ps ps well those can easily be protected by a case.

Nikuliai

To protect the screen you have 2 options, something on it (like xtremeguard or tempered glass) or one of those cases that looks like a brick (cover all the phone and put another layer on the screen), I do use xtremeguard for safekeeping because the screen HAS the posibility to get some tough love, I’ve never scratched except the one on my pretty old P500 (Optimus one) which had literally no protection at all, most cases won’t protect the screen AT ALL and it’s actually fun to watch (I have a cousin that works on construction, has a 30mm thick case and the screen looks like ice after someone was skating on it because those things are totally apart) but the whole “case is a NEED and if you don’t use one you’re a retard” is a pretty stupid thing to me, I’m not gonna add a huge layer to an already big phone because the manufactors are cheap… I would IF I worked on a high risk enviroment (like construction), but for the average person the device needs to be DESIGNED to withstand a fall without breaking and it has to be DESIGNED to not to be slippery, those are design flaws and even if you don’t mind they should be fixed because it’s a potential risk to their users ergo their images… most people don’t care about the latent posibility that their batteries may explode while they are talking, but OEMS MUST CARE

I’ve handled all the flagships Samsung made in one point and another and even if it has improved (a whole lot, but mostly because of hardware) the device doens’t behave even nearly to their potential, and that’s because of crappy configuration on the UI. LG has the same problem, their UI is a whole lot faster than Samsung’s but the QHD display takes a big toll on performance, it’s not THAT noticeable so if you use it daily you’ll get used to it since it doesn’t actually lags, but it takes a pretty big time to do tasks that it shouldn’t and there is PLENTY of comparisons that will show it to you if you just care enough to look it up. Besides the QHD has almost no point, it’s a toll on performance for virtually no gain because the retarded but always present “bigger is better”. Motorola has overall great phones with SHlTTY CAMERAS, the one this year is A LOT better but it still saturates with yellow and tends to make crappy pics if you take it with low light, it has improved a lot, but “it’s not that far behind” may be true this year, but last year’s camera was total garbage, and I know that becaus that’s my daily driver, and it’s my daily driver because I don’t care of them having a crappy camera which is my whole point, I shouldn’t have to settle because it has the thing I want the most. All I ask is that they work on the functionalities they KNOW they suck. And the thing is, they can do it, just look at the Turbo, they fixed all their usual blind spots but actually added the performance hiccup of another QHD which is kind of pointless (most content is in 1080p), we’re watching them destroy performance just because they can… They can go as far as 700-800ppi so we can’t actually see the difference anymore, but the CONTENT just isn’t there, you’re not going to download a 4K movie to see it on your phone because it’s plain dumb to do so, most of the markets are struggling to change the digital signal to HD and the phones are pushing QHD and 4K just because of marketing, but it’s impractical

Now, about watches… If you were a watch person you’d know A LOT of people (not sure why, but I don’t scratch my phones either) crash their watches on other stuff all the time (ex: desktop, kitchen table, walls, door handles) but the risk of scratching and breaking IS there, that’s why any serious watch maker will put a sapphire glass screen on it because people are dumb and always will be and again OEMS MUST CARE…

casesaregood

They make plenty of different kinds of cases that range from very thin to very thick like a brick. I’ve had the same setup on all phones for years, a thin tpu flexible case. It adds a ridge on the front so the screen is raised just enough so it falls face first it protects the screen from hitting the ground. It also protects the sides, top, bottom and back. I’ve dropped my phones with this type of case and never had a phone break and the phone is still in perfect condition 2 years later. And I have yet to have a screen scratch with gorilla glass. I have not had a screen protector on any of my phones for years. The gorilla glass holds up quite well. It may not be sapphire but it’s also a lot cheaper. These phones are already getting close to the thousand dollar mark if they start making them with premium materials like the watches you speak of then everybody including you will now be complaining about the price.

Nikuliai

I use just a screen protector and I’ve never broken one either… so if you sum up both our experiences you don’t really need nor case nor a screen protector…

Also, Gorilla holds pretty well for us, but a woman will scratch it in a day (trust me, I told one it didn’t matter and she scratched it in like the next 5 hours) so I bought her one. Point is, to each their own, the materials should be premium-ish (Sony and Motorola do this quite well and HTC comes close, they have to take action about the material being slippery and they’re almost done), that wouldn’t make the phone that much expensive (Sapphire is an overkill in a phone, but a necessity in a watch, if you have a phone gorilla will suffice)

Charleston

You pretty much just described Droid Turbo (aside from screen and stereo speakers, but at least it’s front facing on Turbo)

Nikuliai

Yeah, the Turbo is the phone I wanted to be the New Moto X, but the capacitive buttons and the shape of the Turbo are a HUGE turnoff to me (I mean the kevlar looks fine but the whole chin thing is annoying to me) and the camera is good but the focus is REALLY slow (tho probably fixable or maybe already fixed, I haven’t checked).
The screen is fine to me, 5.2” so it’s inside my comfort range.

I didn’t actually know it had wireless charging… I actually like it more now x)
If it had the X design I would jump the guy ASAP but I may buy it anyway in a couple months…
Thanks

Keith

I would have been fine sticking with last year’s Moto X, but being on Verizon I don’t know when we’ll see another Nexus that fully works on their network so I just bit it and bought one.

Nikuliai

Hahah, the N 6 was a good call, but too big for me (I can use a 6 inch phone, but I don’t want to). I find the big screens irrelevant in android for the time being

mickeyB88

I agree. Went from a GS3 to an LG G3 and the improvement was substantial. But that’s going from a phone that was a few years old to a current phone, like you said. If I had had a G2, however, I’m not sure I would have upgraded simply because it’s still being supported, both officially and through rooting/roms.

Nikuliai

Precisely the point, of you have a due contact the phones are beasts, if you have a phone from last year those phones are mostly “meeh” since most OEM’s did a good job last year and they are all on the update train so there’s honestly no point in updating… I want to grab the new X but it’s only a wimp, my phone doesn’t freezes and has only one issue (NFC doesn’t work, I broke it when I opened the phone to change the back cover, but I’ve failed to miss something about the NFC tech yet)

IPhart 6 bendgate

So what is the appeal from last year moto x to this year one?

Nikuliai

Absolutely none besides hardware, which is why I’m complaining, 2013 was a year of good phones, innovation and good hardware, 2014 is the year of… good hardware. And considering I have a phone from 2013 I already have good hardware and the functionalities that make me happy to use the damn brick. If you make me recommend a FLAGSHIP I would go with the Moto X because it’s the phone I would buy if I had to buy a flagship (or receive it by contract), but if my phone suddenly explodes and I don’t have a huge deal to get the phone cheap I would most likely go with the OG Moto X again, cuz it has the functionalities almost no other phone has (besides the OPO, which I can’t buy) and has enough hardware to keep me happy for another year.

I HOPE that 2015 is a good year in tech, cuz if it’s hardware again I’m gonna skip this year too… right now the only reason why I want a Moto X (2014) is because I’m a horny bastard, but there is no point for half a second of speed on my regular tasks

CasperTFG

To me the device is ugly. The UI is turd. And I don’t speak for myself when I say the physical home and capacitive buttons are a major turn off. Make a GNex with Note 4 size and specs, now your talking.

CabbageHeadCat.

Turd is perfect.

iryman

same can be said with why vote for moto x it is basicaly same as the 1st gen in that aspect

Nikuliai

In performance the X is faster, has nicer angles, build quality and overall better experience unless you’re a huge power user, so it’s “thee phone off the year” considering it’s the one I would recommend to someone looking for a phone (and the one I would but if I break mine).

I do agree tho, Moto didn’t innovate either, that’s my problem with this year’s tech, but if I ignore that my choice is the X either way, that’s why I voted for it, because none of the other OEM’s offer the experience I wasn’t and Moto does.

Obviously is a matter of preference at this point, hardware right now is irrelevant

sj0808

laughed at “same as the Note 3”

Nikuliai

Well I saw the launch of the Note 3 and though “Meeh, nothing new”, sue me

Anotherworld

The Note 4 metal build blows the crap out of Note 3. I say it’s awesome.

Nikuliai

I kind of hate it rofl, it’s better than last years but it still feels cheap to me… the only thing I want about that phone is the screen tech, but not the size so I’m fuckd

213ninja

my hands don’t feel the same cheap as your hands…….most premium build i’ve ever held is an iphone 5 and the note 4 feels like a massive iphone 5. to each their own tho.

Nikuliai

yeah it’s a matter of preference, to me it doesn’t feel like it would handle well an accidental drop (the sides, sammy’s screens are actually kind of reliable on drops)

CabbageHeadCat.

Metal and leather of the X blows the Note 4 out of the water for me. I mean really, if a small company like Moto can do it, think of what Sammy could do if they actually cared. Considering their Apple like profit margins they could spend $5 and make a phone with a real leather back, not pleather.

the_real_patrick_bateman

No phone is for everyone, regardless of what Apple says.

Nikuliai

True, but do most things well while keeping your brand identity works too, problem is most of them don’t and sadly, Apple does (they have an overall better performing device even with crappier hardware because they care about integration of functionalities, which doesn’t really happens in Android. Where I live everyone recommends the Galaxy S5 (I don’t) and while it’s a beast in hardware and they supposedly toned down TouchWiz it doesn’t performs as you’d expect from a flagship (which is around 800-900 USD here), most of the guys I know that got that phone are saying to me “I didn’t like it”, why? because Sammy is big in the shotgun approach but they won’t refine their “new functionalities”, that’s why people call them gimmicks, cuz they don’t work when you want them to.

Why did I only talked about Samsung? because they are the closest ones to delivering the perfect phone if they just cared enough about software optimization. Same issue with Sony and LG.

PS: I didn’t mention nor HTC nor Motorola on that last part because none of them is even close to delivering the perfect phone

yChoon

The edge Note 4 is far much better than note 3. Because the edge note 3 will stain, believe it or not. The edge of my note 3 got black tiny dot stain after 1 month of usage(never fall never anything)

Nikuliai

To be honest I don’t keep track of the Edge, so I would be talking off my ass if I say something of it, but I did not know the Edge Note 3 stained, that sucks

Jo

Note 4 has the best lag of the group.

h_f_m

If you’re like me and don’t like phones that large you won’t ever vote for a large phone..

TMoore

Not as smooth as Moto X…..not as easy in hand…..not as pleasant interface…. Software features on X more true user needs and friendly.

Note 4 is Samsung best device yet…. And that’s saying a lot. But the interface, lag and bloat like features puts it behind the X

NexusMan

lol

ultravisitor

If I’m honest with myself, I don’t like TouchWiz, nor do I need a bajillion cores to do what I need to do on my phone, nor do I need a stylus…so why would I choose a Note 4?

New_Guy

The Note 4 is the beauty and the beast.

It’s just fantastic.

jerbanumbi

In your eyes only…

niuguy

I don’t see why. Its a better phone than last year but, imo, phone of the year should be more than “best specs of the year”.

AMTrombley89

I voted for the Turbo because it is the highest spec’ed “normal” sized phone. Yes… I know I know…Camera and capacative buttons…but there’s no perfect phone. Even the note 4

d-rock

Until Touchwiz is gone, no Samsung phone will get my vote. If I wanted a Samsung, I’d get an Apple. If I wanted an Apple, I’d get a Samsung.

Sure it did…it was my way of saying that I have no desire for a wannabe Apple device that Samsung puts out (Touchwiz) and their damn hardware front button they won’t eliminate because then they wouldn be less apple-ish.

That is a pretty ridiculous statement. The Note 4 is certainly not the best phone for everyone and the fact that Touch Wiz comes along with it is a deterrent for many. Touch Wiz is certainly a lot better than it used to be but its still clumsy and filled with unnecessary features.
If this was asking whats the best hardware then agree the Note 4 takes the cake but its whats the best phone and in that case the Note 4 is certainly not for everyone. I went Nexus 6 over the Note 4 largely because of software.

LiterofCola

I’m a fan of the Note 4, but I loooove my z3

michael arazan

Yep, I wanted a Note 4 but with Vanilla Android, so I got a Nexus 6

and I voted Moto X 2nd gen as phone of the Year, I was getting a Moto X and planned on it until the improbable happened that Nexus was on verizon again

schlanz

N6 is not a vanilla note. The Note is so much more than just another big screened phone. there is purpose to the big screen that goes beyond “just to be big”

ClikFire _

Software should be the most important factor and while I do feel touchwiz has been improving some its still really bad IMO.

Note 4 is a Great device no doubt, but not sure about device of the year.

Malcolm X in the Middle

I have the Note 4 and voted twice for the Moto X

Jordan Webb

Assuming everyone got a new phone in 2014, could afford the phone they wanted, nobody was restricted by national/carrier bounds, and nobody regrets their purchase.

brkshr

I voted for the Moto X (14) while I own and really like my Nexus 6.

MistaButters

How come? The Moto X has poop battery life.

brkshr

In short, because that is the phone I would recommend to most people that ask my opinion of what phone to buy.

I find most of the features that the MX(14) adds to be very useful. I also think that the size is a little more manageable for most people. I still prefer the Nexus 6 myself because of fast updates, factory images, larger screen & battery, but I wouldn’t recommend it to most of the people I know.

Jordan Webb

Mine’s better than the 2013, which was sufficient. So…yeah, once it’s more than I need, it becomes kind of a non-issue and other things become more important.

ultravisitor

Maybe battery life is outweighed by other features on the Moto X.

Imagine that. People have different priorities.

Pootis Man

In my testing the Moto X’s battery life is a lot better than you’d think. I can easily get 4.5 SOT with 20% or more left in the tank. Usage includes heavy web browsing, Google plus, Heavy use of YouTube and moderate to heavy gaming. I’d say the battery life is actually pretty good. Especially considering how small the battery pack is.

Colin Huber

OK, that’s interesting. My little brother just ordered one and I look forward to seeing if he gets the same results.

JD

I ordered one during the Cyber Monday promotion and agree with Pootis Man. Easily get 5 hours SoT with 60-72 hours off the charger. This blows me away coming from a Galaxy Nexus. And yes, I’m sure other phones can do better, but this is more than acceptable. Plus, having Lollipop already is lovely.

Colin Huber

That’s pretty sweet. Five hours is what a Note does, from my experience. Pleasantly surprised.

JD

I’m sure the Note can do better if I were to use one side-by-side (meaning, keeping my use habbits the same). However, I’m also on WiFi nearly 100% of the day, which may skew the results in my favor. Either way, that 2300 mAh battery is certainly not as worrysome as I first thought prior to purchase and I think your little brother will be okay unless he’s a huge power user.

Colin Huber

He’s a big power user. He consumes YouTube videos like they’re In-N-Out burgers. In need of a new phone, I basically told him the discounted Cyber Monday Moto X was an awesome deal if he wanted to keep unlimited (Verizon), but he’d have to charge it during the day. He’s in the same boat as you, though. His current device gives him like half an hour, so this will be an improvement no matter what, ha.

JD

Suppose there are solutions like portable power packs if it comes down to it, maybe a last minute holiday gift if you celebrate it.

Colin Huber

Dang, great idea. Thanks.

Nikuliai

half an hour? does it charge with potatoes? D:

Colin Huber

I swear I could put a Galaxy Nexus to bed in 15 minutes back in the day.

Nikuliai

God I’m thankful I didn’t own that phone, I would have crushed it at day 2

Higher_Ground

it’s not going to beat the note – but if you aren’t using it 24/7 it will easily last 24 hrs with a nightly charge. The battery stats in Lollipop don’t count up, they count down, so it’s hard for me to give exact times w/o doing some math but I’ve only had it die on me once since purchase shortly after it came out. But put it this way – given the minimal SoT I usually have, it usually predicts ~30 hrs per charge.

Eric

How in the hell are u getting 60-72 hrs!?! I barely get thru a 7.5 hour work day.

Eric

That’s funny cuz I’m luck to get 3 out of mine.

JoeTi

My wife got the moto x ’14 and it’s battery crushed her aging S3. She only charges it at night when its more than 50%. I suppose YMMV.

Allen Yates

Yeah this is all relative. I sweated about the battery life before buying a 2014 X because of comments like your and review of the device. In truth, it’s perfectly fine for someone who doesn’t spend more than a couple of hours a day looking at their phone. It’s miles better than the Droid DNA I had previously. I think it just seems bad because there are phones with better battery life.

Also, the turbo charging/quick charging is not something to be overlooked. It really does make a difference if you just have a few minutes to top off a battery. You can get car charger versions of them now and have your phone charged 30 percent on a 15 or 20 minutes commute to home.

MistaButters

I would honestly bet a lot of these people are voting even if they didn’t buy a 2014 phone and even if they have never used the phone they voted for. No surprise the Moto X 2014 is at the top. Moto software is kick butt, but honestly for a daily driver I’d rather have the Note 4, G3, Z3, or Nexus 6.

Colin Huber

I think it’s hard to pick a device you haven’t tried yourself, unless folks have used them in stores or are just trusting reviews. So naturally, most go with the device they own because they know it best. Plus, grappling with buyer’s remorse is an aggressive internal struggle. Nobody wants that.

MistaButters

I think people are blindly following Motorola here.

Colin Huber

Or that too.

ultravisitor

How is that different from the people who blindly follow other OEMs or series or the Nexus line? You think there aren’t a lot of those people, as well?

MistaButters

I know that happens too. If you put this pole up on certain other Android blogs, I’m sure the Note 4 would win by a landslide and the S5 wouldn’t be near the bottom. The Droid Life writers love Motorola (and for a lot of good reasons), but they often trash a lot of other OEMs or don’t actually cover the benefits of those phones and a lot of commenters here blindly follow and regurgitate without trying out different phones. For DL writers, the skin (or lack there of) automatically trumps everything.

Nikuliai

yeah clearly, Moto has basically 3 devices on the list and all of them are in the top 4 so we clearly have a weak spot for Moto… but as you said that’s because it gave us reasons, I don’t usually trash on Touchwiz but I’ve used in their last 3 flagships and the last 2 transformed into a pile of crap after 6-8 months (s3 and s4, for obvious reasons I haven’t touched a s5 that’s 8 months old), Moto has an overall weaker package but excels in a lot of points that matter (and also falls short in others, like camera and battery life), Sammy on the other hand offers a stronger overall package but it doesn’t excel in anything, and I mean anything, it’s all good and stuff but you get nothing that makes you think “damn the S and Note brands offer something nobody else does” and that’s something most of the other brands cleared out already, and imho that’s why Samsung has been losing sales lately… people wants flashy new things, not just last year’s phone with a little better hardware… (and that’s also why the iPhone keeps selling, cuz even if they sell the same thing it LOOKS like a rebranding every year)

schlanz

Samsung doesn’t excel in anything? Display. Camera. And at least with the Note, battery. it’s comments like these (and saying the note 4 is the same as the note 3) that show true fanboy stripes. All the while praising another device while completely downplaying its shortcomings.

Literally the best display on the market right now and its not even that close. There may be marginally better cameras but the Note 4 is certainly on the short list for best. and for a 5.7″ display the battery life is simply phenomenal, even at 2k its more power efficient than the Note 3 screen. The touchwiz complaints at this point are more anecdotal than anything. Read any thorough review out there and the consensus is TW is refined, toned down, and performance hiccups are so few and far between that it doesn’t spoil the experience. You could flash that talking point with the S5 and almost every samsung prior, but the Note 4 has smoothed things out.

Nikuliai

It doesn’t excel in camera, it’s just good, not great, Sony excels in camera. The display IS the best but I don’t even care, Samsung screens tend to exaggerate the colors to make them more vibrant, it seems fake to me either way (and yeah, I’ve used it). Call me a fanboy if you want, but I’ve said like 4 times that there is no game changer this year since they’re all just improving a little in the hardware department, it’s not relevant so right now it’s just about what do you prefer.

I do think the best display race is close, I actually like more the G3 display since it looks more real but whatevs…

The part about TW being better is true, but it’s no good at all do what’s the point, there may be less hiccups but it’s still slower than other flagships and it shouldn’t be (same as the Nexus 6, the performance is way skirt the expected of a monster). The G3 falls short on this department too so, for the last time, it’s about what you like on a phone, all the freaking 2014 phone are replicas of 2013 with hardware improvements, whether you would want one or not it’s only about what you want on that phone but the note 4 is not the phone off the year by any means… If you ask me about phablet of the year I would vote for it, but I wouldn’t use a phablet so I don’t care if it has a snapdragon 9005 if it performs at the same speed that the S801…

I’ll give you this “Samsung excels in screen tech” (but I don’t like it cuz it seems fake)

schlanz

there is a setting where you change the contrast/Saturation if you don’t like the default. just one of those “useless” touchwiz features I guess. /s

Article just released today which puts to bed all almost all the misgivings about the Note 4. And backs up what I’ve said regarding the camera and display being top notch; the former being among the best out there and the latter being hands down the best out there.

vzwuser76

So that would be better because they may have more Samsung supporters on that site? How is that any different? One site’s biased voters are more relevant than another site’s?

I chose the Turbo, because I looked at the available phones and that’s what I chose. The Note 4 and Nexus 6 have a lot going for them, but they also aren’t as easily usable due to their size, and that’s a drawback for most people. The X has MotoMaker which is a bonus, but it’s battery is a drawback. Most of the others on the list are either running older tech, have availability issues, or are from companies with poor device support. That’s how I made my decision. If that’s biased then so be it.

joejoe5709

Good points. I agree.

ClikFire _

Battery on the moto x improved a lot with 5.0 many people are saying. I don’t know 1st hand though.

Akuma10

I have used the HTC M8, galaxy s5, Note 4, Sony z3 and the Moto X 2014. I’m my opinion the moto X is the best overall. The Z3 is a amazing phone and doesnt get the credit it deserves but the call quality I find to be inconsistent. The note 4 still lags when it comes to multi tasking which is crazy. The M8 is awesome by the camera holds it back. S5 feels cheap to me. The moto can use expandable storage thought.

MistaButters

You literally picked one thing on each phone and discredited them because of it lol. Both the Z3 and Note 4 have better cameras, displays, and battery lives than the Moto X, not to mention expandable storage.

Walter White

The z3 impressed me, really nice phone.

Walter White

Z3C ☺

Count_Iblis

Yeah, no. I have the 2014 moto x and voted for it. Great phone.

mickeyB88

I was honestly shocked that the Nexus 6 was so high, but then I remembered where I was and was less shocked haha. That phone has done nothing to innovate or make itself stand out aside from being obnoxiously big, added to an awful launch and a plethora of bugs right out of the gate. But it’s a Nexus, so it’s gotta be good, right?

ClikFire _

Do you really expect to be impressed by smart phones anymore? I think the impressive state of smart phones has plateaued for the time being.

Bugs have basically been fixed already I do agree its pretty big 5.5 is personally my limit. I think has to do more with stock not just being a Nexus. I’m a Nexus 5 user but I will ve skipping the 6 and going for the OPO, moto x 2014 or something else this march.

Quen

I don’t get it.

h_f_m

I’m still rocking me nexus 5 but would like to vote for the z3c..

MistaButters

Honestly I’d probably take a Nexus 5 over the Moto X 2014 lol.

moelsen8

that was my “other”!

NexusMan

Judging from your comments, I assume you use all of the phones you just mentioned.

r0l

I have and like my Nexus 6 and I voted for the Moto X. I can see a lot more people being happy with that form factor while still getting the latest updates.

d-rock

I know this sounds dumb, but I really love the IR port on a phone. It’s saved my arse a few times (like turning up the volume on the booth TVs at Twin Peaks). If the moto X got the IR port, I don’t think I’d have any question as to what device I’d get.

I just with OEMs would start providing stock Android ROMs like Sony is now doing.

kixofmyg0t

I voted for the 2nd Gen Moto X even though I’m typing this on a DROID TURBO.

Mike_Cook7

Curious as to why you like the Moto X 2nd gen more than the Turbo. It appears that the Turbo is the Moto X with a bigger battery and different styling. Oh and capacitive touch buttons.

I was between the X and the Turbo this year and both have their pros and cons… If I HAD to change devices this year (which I don’t) I would’ve bought one of those or a Z3 Compact, but I’m not giving up touchless controls and I really dislike SONY’s UI and shape so I would’ve most likely grabbed the X or Turbo…

And in my case the desition was like this:
Moto X released: God that’s sexy I want it… but battery life almost the same as last year and the camera is good but not great…
Droid Turbo released: God that’s fugly but that HW tho…
Nexus 6: Too big
G3: good build and performance but doesn’t have touchless
S5: pretty screen, meh performance (tried it, hated it, but the screen is sexy)
M8: can’t buy where I leave
1+: can’t buy… ¿anywhere?
Note 4: Too big, cool pen

So in the end I looked at my phone and said “nah I don’t need to change this one, maybe next year since there is no big leap and I’m getting 5.0 anyway”… but again, if I had to buy one I would prioritize touchless controls, battery life and form factor, but I would most likely go with the X (the Turbo is ugly imo, and in the long term I want a phone that looks good and it’s comfortable to hold)

Richard Gao

The G3 doesn’t have good performance. Trust me, I had one for a week or so and couldn’t bear the frame drops so I went back to a Nexus 5 and OnePlus One. The Snapdragon 801 simply cannot handle a 1440p display.

Nikuliai

yeah I forgot about the whole 1440p thing, I was extrapolating with the G2 (which is the one I used) and the performance was one of the best of its time imo, but yeah, the screen was a bad choice so I guess the struggle is there (haven’t used one)

Walter White

That’s not true for me, mine performs the same or better than any other flagship.

Vanquishgc

I’ve had the G3 for a couple weeks now, and I’ve had almost zero lag myself. Were you gaming much? Because I could see that being an issue I guess.

Richard Gao

I actually wasn’t. It was more of a problem with day to day use. Animations of apps opening would stutter. Actually, animations in general would stutter.

mickeyB88

The screen resolution holds it back. I’ve noticed lag here and there, but nothing to complain too much about. I mean, I should be able to do more given the internals, but once I slapped Nova Prime on my interface, at least that lag was mitigated.

disqus_giRAeS0zyr

If you switch the G3 from Dalvik to ART, the performance is noticeably better.

Mike_Cook7

I have to say very well written. My feelings are almost spot on the only thing that I differ on is the battery life of the Turbo is worth it for me over the nicer form factor of the X but opion’s right they differ. Thx for the great response. This is what makes this site great!

Nikuliai

I’m actually considering buying the Turbo, even if it’s not pretty it’s the best phone imo if you’re not THAT into cameras (the sensor is great but the camera software isn’t… by a long shot), someone told me that the speaker ain’t good if you’re talking in loud spaces which is one of the reasons I liked Moto so that’s a big con too, but other than that the phone is a freaking beast, and I guess a beast has permission to be ulgy rofl

I’m between the Turbo and skipping this year (which is almost over)… I like the X (A LOT) but besides hardware the improvement is not really that noticeable and HW was never a problem with the OG X, but the Turbo has Wireless and/or Turbo charging, insane battery life, a pretty good screen (kicks in the floor the one on the OG X) and it has amazing performance so it would have to be MY choice (since it has voice recognition software and that’s the thing I use the most on my phone)

IF I break my phone (probable, I opened it twice this year already) I’m going for either the X or the Turbo, but most likely the Turbo

Anyway, have a nice year

kixofmyg0t

Because as much as the turbo is a beast, it’s not for everyone. Many will not like the capacitive buttons. Others will not like the locked bootloader.

The 2nd Gen Moto X has all of the software features that the DROID TURBO does but in a more mass market approved chassis. It brought enhanced Moto features to users first, so as much as I love the DROID TURBO…..it wouldn’t be the beast it is without X laying the ground work. Phone of the year to me is more than just what has the best specs, it’s what is the most influential, most appealing, best all around phone.

That is the Moto X, again.

Mike_Cook7

Thx as I said to Nikuliai I agree, I just fall victim to the battery life!

wow

Off-topic based on your username: Wow, myg0t still exists? that’s either really sad or impressive. lol

Tony Byatt

Well, with the high number of Nexus 6 votes I doubt that is the case…

JabbaMac

I have a Moto X 2014, but I voted “other” because I think the Moto Maxx is the best phone because it’s like a pure edition, GSM Droid Turbo, and has everything I wish the Moto X had (bigger battery, wireless charging, etc.)

Nikuliai

I would assume the Maxx and the Turbo would’ve counted as the same model (it kind of is)

El Big CHRIS

Pretty much. But I think the m8 would win if it wasn’t for that camera. I own it and hope htc will wow us next year.

Dan

um, yeah I have a 2 year old Note 2, didn’t see it on the list.

Keith

Wrong. I have a Nexus 6. It’s phenomenal. I love it. Best phone I’ve ever used. But it’s not for everyone. I voted Moto X. My wife and mother-in-law each own one and they love it.

Mostly because they decided to up the screen size, resolution, jump to current specs, improved camera, improved battery, lollipop, etc…

IMO Note 4 is still the best all around device. But it’s only slight improvements on last year’s model.

niuguy

I didn’t. I voted the Oneplus One because it really changed so many things. Its not about the best phone or the best company….its about the most impactful. I’m not sure if it was…..but to me it was so unique and made such a unique splash that it earned my vote.

Nope, my phone isn’t mentioned on the list. I simply voted on the phone I want to have… But it is low in the list of results. Guess that it isn’t so good or so popular… zdrowykregoslup.net.pl

r0l

I have a Nexus 6 and love it but I voted for the Moto X, that’s the better all around phone.

Higher_Ground

which is a great sign, because 2-3 years ago plenty of people were stuck with phones they didn’t really like after a year or so.

WitnessG

As much as I want to vote for one of the Motorola devices, they were all let downs for me. I would have to go G3 or Note 4.

NexusPhan

I thought the same thing until I got one myself. What a fantastic phone this is. I bought a micro power pack because I was worried about battery life. Literally never have had to use it. I’m a phone addict and it’s by far my favorite phone. Too each their own! Best android feature there is!

jchristanis

Love my moto x 2nd gen.

xzero425x

I wanted a nexus 6… Then I’m really enjoying my G3 running 5.0.1 asop. But now the camera sucks >.<

NexusPhan

Nexus 6, specially for the folks on Verizon, rocking on Liquidsmooth, 6+ hours screen on time

Xious

I started with the new Moto X and went to the Droid Turbo. I wish I could say the Turbo is the best phone, but the capacitive buttons and the really show camera just put it behind the Moto X. The design, the camera, the feel, and the speed of the Moto X make it the best phone in my opinion. If it weren’t for the battery, I would’ve stayed with the Moto X, but alas, I don’t like searching for a charger by early evening.

wh1te_mag1c

Yea, my friend also has the Turbo and was complaining about the camera. That’s a damn shame, because the sensor is supposed to be great.

NeilOMalley

I have managed to take some pretty good shots with it. Overall though its decent. The shutter lag is the biggest issue for me. I am hoping that the lollipop update gives Motorola the the ability to greatly improve it.

TC Infantino

I just use Google Camera instead of the Moto one. It seems quick enough, though I wouldn’t compare it to the speed of a stand alone camera.

staticx57

LG G2 😀

sammy sammo

Motorola is da best….

Israel Fabian

Gnex sadly… I’m planning on getting the Nexus 6 once Verizon has it.

Matthew DiGiacomo

Gnex is the phone of the year?

Israel Fabian

Yeah back in 2011 lol. Its still a great phone IMO.

Nicholas Ruiz

Nexus 6, closely followed by Moto X 2014. I would switch those around if the latter had better battery life and slightly better screen

Will ⚽

I didn’t find a phone that was great enough to upgrade this year.

Guest

mind telling us the super phone u use? There are many phones in 2014 which are worthy of upgrade from 2013 phones…

IF you use touchless controls (and by that same logic, an OG Moto X) you’ll most likely don’t care much about the update for mainly 2 reasons:

-There is no big leap in innovation this year
-We don’t care that much about hardware… I never wait on the X, so 2 cores or 20 cores are the same to me for my level of usage (I play a lot but the android games aren’t that hardware intensive)

Will ⚽

Very good points. Most of the new innovation this year is adaptation of Motorolas smart features we have had.

Once lollipop drops for the original Moto X I feel I can easily go at least another 6 months. My only complaint is battery life is diminishing, but that’s inevitable. I’ll do a factory reset to clean all the clutter right before lollipop hits and will feel like a new phone.

Nikuliai

Have you tried taskbomb?
I shut down the Wifi, Sync and Data from 1am to 8am and I’ve seen a HUGE improvement in battery life (I use pushbullet a lot now too tho), I’m charging every 36-48 hours, which is all I asked (to be able to have your phone up and running if you’re not spending the night at home)

PS: Battery life degradation was also my only reason to even think about buying another phone

Will ⚽

I’ll have to try it. Thanks

sonicyoof

G2 owner here, totally agree. If the Nexus 6 was more of a Nexus 5.1 (with LTE) then I might have gone for it.

Larry Simpson

Other…G3 (Rooted)

Larry Simpson

Should clarify, development is really picking up on the G3. Main reason for the comment.

AlexMWilliams

If more people could get their hands on the Nexus 6, I feel like it would win hands down

Ryan

Or get their hands around it 😉 In all honestly though I really interested in the nexus 6 but I previously got my G3 as I did not expect Verizon to be getting a nexus device ever again. We’ll see what’s available next summer.

Carlos Lopez

I don’t really want to say any were they were all a bit of a let down to me

Suicide_Note

That’s because you haven’t wrapped your mitts around the sweetness that is the N6.

Carlos Lopez

I have its size was too big for me and I normally dont have that problem plus its encryption really slows it down and my battery life while i was on it wasnt that great

Suicide_Note

That stinks. I turned off encryption as soon as I got it, and speed has never been a problem for me. Battery life has been great, too.